The Moments of God

“‘For a brief moment I forsook you,
But with great compassion I will gather you.
In an outburst of anger
I hid My face from you for a moment,
But with everlasting lovingkindness I will have compassion on you,’
Says the Lord your Redeemer.
‘For this is like the days of Noah to Me,
When I swore that the waters of Noah
Would not flood the earth again;
So I have sworn that I will not be angry with you
Nor will I rebuke you.’”  Isaiah 54:7-9

This gracious promise to Israel gives a beautiful insight into both God’s character and the relation of time to eternity. God can be a God of wrath, for He must punish unforsaken sin in His people, but He is much more the God of mercy. He prolonged judgement on His chosen people of Israel is only “for a brief moment” compared to His “everlasting lovingkindness” toward redeemed Israel in the ages to come.

This theme occurs a number of times in Scripture. “For His anger is but for a moment, His favor is for a lifetime; Weeping may last for the night, But a shout of joy comes in the morning” (Psalm 30:5). To the people faithful to God during a time of judgment against their nation or against the world, God says: “Come, my people, enter into your rooms...Hide for a little while until indignation runs its course” (Isa. 26:20). Thus, a time of testing or judgement may extend over many days, or years, or even centuries, but this is only a moment in relation to the endless ages of blessing yet to come.

As applied to Christians, this concept is stated explicitly in the only occurrence of the Greek “parakutika” (“moment”) in the New Testament. “For momentary, light affliction is producing for us an eternal weight of glory far beyond all comparison” (2 Cor. 4:17). “For behold, I create new heavens and a new earth; And the former things will not be remembered or come to mind....They will do no evil or harm in all My holy mountain” (Isa. 65:17, 25).

May God give us eyes of faith to see these “moments” of God in their eternal setting.