My word shall not return void
“So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it.”Isaiah 55:11
Reflection
This verse is the conclusion of a beautiful comparison. In the previous verse, God says that, just as the rain and snow come down from heaven, water the earth, make it bring forth and bud, and give seed to the sower and bread to the eater, "So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it." The image is at once simple and profound: the rain does not fall without purpose, and God's Word does not either. It has a target, a mission, a result.
Notice what is affirmed: the Word "shall not return unto me void". Every sender of a message expects a response; God, in sending His Word, guarantees that it will accomplish what it should. That is an enormous comfort for those who read the Bible without seeing immediate change, for those who pray and see no result, for those who share the faith with someone and it seems to have no effect. The seed God casts is not thrown away. It may take time, like a seed under the ground through winter, but the promise is that it will work.
Note that the Word does "that which I please" and prospers "in the thing whereto I sent it". It has a purpose defined by God, not by us. Sometimes we expect the Word to bring us immediate comfort, and it corrects us. Sometimes we want it to solve a problem, and it transforms our heart. God knows what He sent it for. Our part is to receive, to sow and to trust. The result does not depend on our talent in sharing, but on the power of the Word that God Himself sent.
This should encourage us on two fronts. First, in personal reading: even when you feel nothing, the Word you read is working. Continue, with constancy, and trust that something sprouts. Second, in speaking of God to others: use the Word. A verse said with affection to someone who suffers, a passage shared, a promise recalled. Do not underestimate what the Word can do. You sow; God makes it sprout. And the rain He sends never returns void.
Prayer
Lord, thank You that Your Word does not return void. Help me read it steadily and trust that it works in me, even when I do not feel it. Use me to sow Your Word in the lives of others, without anxiety about the result, because I know You make it sprout. Amen.
Put it into practice
Sow the Word in someone's life today: send a verse or promise to a person who needs it, with a word of affection. And continue your daily Bible reading, trusting that it works in you even without feelings.
To reflect on
Have you been discouraged by not seeing immediate results from the Word you read and sow, and what does this verse say about it?
Bible text: King James Version (public domain).