709_Resting in God’s strong city (Isaiah 26)
Isaiah 26:1-6 In that day this song will be sung in the land of Judah:
“We have a strong city;
he sets up salvation
as walls and bulwarks.
2 Open the gates,
that the righteous nation that keeps faith may enter in.
3 You keep him in perfect peace
whose mind is stayed on you,
because he trusts in you.
4 Trust in the Lord forever,
for the Lord God is an everlasting rock.
5 For he has humbled
the inhabitants of the height,
the lofty city.
He lays it low, lays it low to the ground,
casts it to the dust.
6 The foot tramples it,
the feet of the poor,
the steps of the needy.”
There was once a painting competition for children based on the theme, “The Beauty of Serenity.” Most of the children painted scenes of quietness—a still lake reflecting the colors of sunset, a quiet forest path, a garden blooming with flowers, a mother gently cradling her sleeping baby. But one painting stood apart.
It portrayed a violent storm at sea. Waves crashed furiously against jagged cliffs while dark clouds filled the sky. At first glance, it hardly seemed to fit the theme of serenity at all. But tucked away in a cleft of the rock was a nest, inside which sat a little bird, sheltered and unafraid, looking out over the raging sea and singing.
That painting captured true peace.
Peace is not the absence of storms. It is security in the midst of them. It is the joy that sings in the dark. It is the quiet confidence of a soul sheltered by God, in the midst of unfavorable circumstances.
That is exactly the kind of peace Isaiah 26 describes. Through sweeping judgments and promises, the prophet describes the song that God’s redeemed people will sing “in that day.” It is not a song born out of comfort or earthly stability, but out of confidence in the LORD. Isaiah writes, “We have a strong city; he sets up salvation as walls and bulwarks” (Isaiah 26:1, ESV).
In ancient times, the walls were the strength of a city. Massive walls meant safety, protection, security. But Isaiah says the people of God possess something greater than stone walls. They are safe in the salvation of God. Their city is strong because God is there.
Most people search desperately for security. Some trust in wealth. Others trust in governments, careers, health, relationships, or human ability. Yet all these things can fail. How fragile are the things upon which people build their confidence.
But how unshakable is our refuge. For our rest is not in circumstances, but in the unchanging character of God. As the prophet declares, “You keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on you, because he trusts in you” (Isaiah 26:3, ESV).
The phrase “perfect peace” literally means “peace, peace.” It speaks of complete, settled, undisturbed peace. Not a shallow emotional calm, but a deep inward rest that comes from leaning wholly on the sovereign, unmatchable power of God Himself.
This is the person whose mind is “stayed” upon the Lord. Like that tiny bird hidden safely in the cleft of the rock during the storm, the believer learns to rest the full weight of anxious thoughts upon God.
That does not mean life suddenly becomes easy. Storms still come. Questions still arise. Trials still hurt. But peace is no longer dependent on our outward condition; the heart has found shelter in the Lord.
Philippians 4:6–7 echoes this: “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.” Then he gives this promise: “And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”
God’s peace guards the heart from needless and dangerous anxiety, like walls surrounding a city. For worry brings with it a host of other temptations to sin. Therefore, Isaiah urges, “Trust in the LORD forever, for the LORD GOD is an everlasting rock” (Isaiah 26:4, ESV).
This is the promise of utter stability. Rocks do not change with the weather. Human strength shifts constantly, but God remains faithful forever.
Sometimes life feels uncertain. We may carry fears about the future, burdens within the family, unseen struggles. But underneath is the everlasting Rock.
In marked contrast to God’s strong city is the doomed city of human pride. Throughout Scripture, proud cities like Babylon symbolize humanity living independently from God. Babylon represents civilization built upon arrogance, self-sufficiency, and rebellion against the Lord.
Such cities are still being built today. Not always with towers and walls, but with pride, self-glory, and confidence in human achievement. Society constantly tells us to trust ourselves, exalt ourselves, and depend entirely upon our own strength.
Yet Isaiah reminds us, “He lays it low, lays it low to the ground, casts it to the dust” (Isaiah 26:5, ESV). Only what is founded upon God will endure. The strong city belongs not to the self-sufficient, but to those who humbly trust in the Lord.
Isaiah continues, “The path of the righteous is level; you make level the way of the righteous” (Isaiah 26:7, ESV). Though we may walk through difficulty, God oversees every step. The most painful or confusing road is still under His sovereign care.
For our lives are not random. God measures the path of His people with wisdom and love.
Isaiah also reveals the heart of the righteous person: “My soul yearns for you in the night; my spirit within me earnestly seeks you” (Isaiah 26:9, ESV). When at rest, the saint desires God as a bird comes home to its nest from every flight.
And when trials come, they reveal where our true confidence lies. Some people turn their backs on God when faced with suffering. Others draw us closer to Him, in complete, heartfelt dependence than ever before.
Charles Spurgeon once said, “I have learned to kiss the wave that throws me against the Rock of Ages.” Indeed, the very storms we fear are the means by which we discover the faithfulness of God.
Isaiah acknowledges humanity’s helplessness apart from the Lord, the fact that we cannot bring salvation or peace to ourselves, or fix what only God can heal. And he also lifts our eyes beyond the present suffering with this glorious promise: “Your dead shall live; their bodies shall rise” (Isaiah 26:19, ESV).
For the Lord declared in John 11:25, “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live.” This is our hope and confidence amidst the greatest sorrow and uncertainty.
Isaiah closes with a tender warning from God: “Come, my people, enter your chambers, and shut your doors behind you; hide yourselves for a little while until the fury has passed by” (Isaiah 26:20, ESV). Just as Noah was protected in the ark, just as Israel was preserved during the grim mission of the angel of Death by the blood of the Passover lamb, God knows how to keep His people secure and safe while his wrath is raging against the wicked.
Isaiah 26 calls us to rest in God’s strong city, to fix our minds upon Him. To trust the everlasting Rock. To discover true peace, not in a trouble-free life, but in the presence of an unchanging God. The world cannot offer that kind of peace. But Christ can.
The strong city still stands. And those who trust in the Lord are secure within it. God bless.
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