You can listen to me reading this article here:
Here’s the Scripture in question, Isaiah 55:8-9.
“For my thoughts are not your thoughts,
neither are your ways my ways, declares the Lord.
For as the heavens are higher than the earth,
so are my ways higher than your ways
and my thoughts than your thoughts.”
Without fail I have always heard this interpreted to mean, like so:
“God’s ways are mysterious, and you can’t understand them. So when things about Christianity or your faith or your life or God don’t make any sense, you don’t need to try to figure them out, because you won’t be able to.
This had bothered me, but I hadn’t ever explored these verses in context.
However, recently . . .
Recently a friend commended to me the works of Malcolm Smith. She sent me some audios, and I enjoyed them so much I began listening to his video sermons on youtube.
Sadly, I failed to take note of where he spoke about these verses, and I can’t find it after much searching, so I can’t link you to it. (If you find the one where he talks about this, I’ll be deeply indebted to you.)
But he’s the one who brought to light to me what these verses really mean.
I wanted to shout for joy when I heard it. Because that’s the God I know.
Of course, his explanation came through the context.
Just look at the entire astonishing context of Isaiah 55. In the ESV, the heading is “The Compassion of the LORD.”
The first verses may be quite familiar to you.
“Come, everyone who thirsts,
come to the waters;
and he who has no money,
come, buy and eat!
Come, buy wine and milk
without money and without price.”
The Lord is speaking to the people of Israel here, but we know that His heart is for all people of the world. He’s making an astonishing offer that only a fool would refuse.
“Why do you spend your money for that which is not bread,
and your labor for that which does not satisfy?
Listen diligently to me, and eat what is good,
and delight yourselves in rich food.”
The Lord is expressing His frustration with His people for turning away from Him to cheap pleasures, even destructive pleasures, that wouldn’t satisfy. And not only that, the people were actually paying for the destructive pleasures, when the pleasures in Him were free.
Again I observe, only a fool would make such a choice. Blinded by deception.
After some promises that are very specific to His people Israel, the Lord goes on to say,
“Seek the Lord while he may be found;
call upon him while he is near;
let the wicked forsake his way,
and the unrighteous man his thoughts;
let him return to the Lord, that he may have compassion on him,
and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon.”
Do you see it? Do you see the astounding love of our Lord?
It’s absolutely breathtaking.
He’s saying to the prodigal, “Come back home. My heart is toward you, and I have been waiting for you. My arms are open for you. When you forsake your wicked way, you’re ever so welcome in My family. I will pardon. I will have compassion. I will redeem and restore.” If you will only truly come.
Oh my friend, do you see? THAT is the lead-in to the verses we’re exploring:
“For my thoughts are not your thoughts,
neither are your ways my ways, declares the Lord.
For as the heavens are higher than the earth,
so are my ways higher than your ways
and my thoughts than your thoughts.”
God isn’t talking here about being mysterious and distant and quixotic and unknowable.
He’s actually talking about how He’s overflowing with love.
“You wouldn’t have patience like this, would you?
You don’t have the ability to restore and transform like this, do you?
You can’t wrap your mind around generosity like this, can you?”
Those two verses, Isaiah 55:8-9 ,have been used to distance us from God. But they actually cry out, “Draw near! Behold the astounding compassion of our Lord! You can’t possibly fathom how great His love is!”
No matter who you are, no matter what you have done, no matter what has been done to you . . .
Our God delights to receive, redeem, transform.
This is the “higher way” of Isaiah 55:8-9.
I’ll never look at these verses the same again. And once again, when the Scriptures are untwisted, we stand in awe of the great, mighty, and tender love of our God.
EDITED TO ADD: A friend found Malcolm Smith’s video that references this Scripture. You can view it here.
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another way used to shut down questioning is to use the verse where the snake fools Eve. “has God said…?”
3 words vilified because the enemy said them. The enemy has used more words than that, in fact, evil people have used millions of words. Are all those words now evil because someone evil spoke them.
I have found that questioning God’s word, or rather what people say those words mean, has led to more knowledge and understanding of it. More research, prayer, meditation and asking “just what did God mean when He said those words?”
That’s a good approach.
Thank you seems inadequate and yet it is heartfelt. So, thank you.
Beautifully said and well written. I take great comfort in knowing that His ways are higher, better, sovereign than anything I could ever attempt. Praise the Lord! Thank you for sharing!
Amen!
I’ve often heard these verses used in such a way to imply we really can’t understand God at all, and if bad stuff is happening and we are trying to make sense of it, its not worth trying.
But when I saw the first line of this in the email I went to Isaiah 55, to read it before seeing your take, and started at verse 1.
And it was clear! His ways are higher and better, and if we are wrapped up in the foolishness and wickedness of this world, His ways may seem incomprehensible. But they are so good (really good, not just, “seems bad but thats cuz’ you’re a fallen human who isn’t trusting Him enough” twisted kind of “good.”)
Yes! I saw it too, and I’m so thankful.
Yes, this!
It wasn’t meant to be a roadblock and ‘sit down and shut up’ but an invitation to draw closer to Him and ask for understanding and wisdom, so He can help us grow to be more attuned to and like Him.
Awesome Rebecca. Thanks for sharing this revelation!
Blessings,
Warren
South Carolina, USA
Thank you, again, for clarifying what our kind God really means
Many thanks for this article. In the past, those verses have made me feel like God was distant, aloof, detached, when I was hurting; like He was brushing aside my pain and not taking it seriously. It’s been hard to find comfort in those verses. I so hate it when Christians try to use those verses to shut down the questions of hurting people.
Yes, I felt the same way after understanding them!
Yes! Exactly this.
“I wanted to shout for joy when I heard it. Because that’s the God I know.”
YES! This is who He is! This is His heart towards us! It’s such good news!
But I’m also feel such overwhelming grief at yet another example of how God has been egregiously and erroneously misrepresented, that keeps people from Him and from knowing Him truthfully.
It’s terrible. But we continue to have the passion to represent Him accurately in all His holy love!
Wow, this verse has been quoted to me in support of an errant doctrine that doesn’t make sense. When I question that doctrine, this verse is quoted. Then I counter with 1 Cor 2:6-16 which says people of the ages haven’t understood the mysteries of God but now we can through the Spirit, we can actually have the mind of Christ, so we don’t need to accept a nonsensical doctrine. Then they say, “that passage is about Heaven” and I say, “there’s no indication that passage is about Heaven” and that’s where we end in standoff. Please do untwist 1 Cor 2:6-16 also for people if you haven’t already.
Good one! And yes, I’ll put that on the list to do, either in a Tiny Untwisting email or in a longer article here. (If you’re not subscribed to my emails you can do that so you can be sure to see it.)
Wow! Thank you for this encouragement and this correction.
Thanks for sharing that. I do see how some Christians love to use verses like this to simply accept whatever happens, since God is sovereign, so naturally everything that happens is God’s will and we cannot question his ways, no matter what happens. “His ways are higher”. So, this can be used to defend and justify all manner of evil even within the churches. Which I know you know all too well.
I love this perspective on it. It is insightful and helpful. Yet, I have been struggling so much too. Through my whole life. I’m struggling to make time consistently to seek God. I’m struggling with turning to him consistently for comfort and healing and relationship; I still tend to go back to my lifelong coping mechanisms of tv, social media, food, cleaning house or whatever I can to keep busy. Running. I hate myself for it. I know he is the answer, he is better than anything in this world. I know he supposedly loves me, etc, etc. Yet… I’m tired and weary and discouraged and confused. Myself and my family have been thru a very long wilderness season with no end in sight. Every time I think God is going to step in and intervene and change things…. he doesn’t. I am currently having to go thru a divorce after 27 years of a difficult marriage and four children with my second husband. I move into an apt soon. My now ex has already found a new woman that he is pursuing a new relationship with. He no longer believes in God. I feel like God keeps disappointing and confusing me with his ways. I’m not going to church anywhere for a variety of reasons. But needless to say, I love lots of what I’m re-learning about God in the word….but can’t seem to come to a place of finding a church with people who will give me the encouragement I need in this wilderness/valley. I want someone to talk with, yet…I procrastinate. I know one reason is I don’t trust most Christians anymore. I do feel like American Christianity is a wretched mess.
It’s also a little more complicated for me due to my being fully deaf so it hinders communication. And finding a sign language interpreter to interpret at local churches. There just aren’t enough available. Too many churches balk at the expense, so most interpreters have to volunteer or not do it at all. It’s frustrating. The deaf and hard of hearing community is one people group that Churches/Christians fail to share the gospel with and fail to represent the heart of God to.
Tonya, my heart hurts for the pain you’ve experienced. I’m emailing you.
That’s rough. I’m so sorry to hear this. I have a good friend (hearing) who is really interested in ministry to the deaf. She lives in East Tennessee now. She too has had a hard time finding bible-based churches that offer interpreters. It’s sad to hear that most churches don’t make it a priority. I thought that maybe they just weren’t aware.
When I was in college, my chaplain tried to point me to these verses, in a good way. I was really struggling with my faith, and my mental health. Another good friend of mine also tried to point me to these verses, as I struggled deeply with intrusive thoughts. She tried to reassure me that my distorted thought life wasn’t indicative of God’s love for me.
But I can see how this can be used in the wrong way. In a trite, dismissive way. Or telling people to “trust God’s goodness,” even when things are terrible for you.
I’m glad people used it the right way for you, even if it was hard to receive at the time.
Thank you, Rebecca.
Isolating Isaiah 55:8-9 from the preceding verses 6-7 is like seeing the roof of a house floating without walls and a ceiling to support it. Verses 6-7 (the walls and ceiling) use strong active verbs to anchor verses 8-9 (the roof); seek, call, forsake, and return.
The beauty of connecting verses 6-9 is in the invitation to come and the reason why you can.
Come if your ways were wicked.
Come if your thoughts were unrighteous.
Forsake your ways, forsake your thoughts.
Come.
Return to Me.
I will pardon you because My thoughts are different than your thoughts, My ways are higher than your ways.
A hearty “Thank you” for giving us a complete picture of this passage!
It’s so beautiful when you see the whole thing.
Thank you Rebecca, for sharing this. How astounding and comforting is the love, mercy and power of God, and this is what scripture seeks to reassure us of. How utterly tragic when men, instead, twist and distort the comforting words of God into dangerous and damaging assertions that are not from the heart of God.
To even think of taking these beautiful, reassuring words and turn them into warnings like ‘Do not question what we say, even when it seems to contradict the nature and promises of God’ is unthinkable, and yet this is what so many in the institutional church have done.
If nothing else, I have learned that when scripture is being weaponized and used to manipulate and control it is not being properly understood or applied. The ‘Word’ of God is always incomparable, selfless, sacrificial, everlasting love – all that was and is Jesus. The reason the Word became flesh is so that we could see it for ourselves, the love of God that no man or men could hide or distort. Thank you, Father, for breathing your Word into human flesh, sending us the message of love, life and hope that we most long for.
Amen! Thank you, Janice.
Wow! Wow! Wow! You make it so clear! That’s beautiful!
Yes! Praise God!