“Lift up your eyes on high, and behold who hath created these things, that bringeth out their host by number: he calleth them all by names by the greatness of his might, for that he is strong in power; not one faileth.”
(Isaiah 40:26)
This majestic verse from Isaiah 40 stands as a sharp rebuke to our weak faith and limited view of God. The entire chapter declares the supremacy and sufficiency of God, beginning with the heralding of comfort to His people and then transitioning to a sweeping proclamation of His role as both Creator and Disposer of all things.
In verses 12-20, God is set forth as the one who fashioned the world, the One before whom all creation bows. In verses 21-26, the focus turns to His sovereign governance, the One who disposes all things according to His will. He is not only powerful; He is supremely wise and intimately acquainted with all that He governs.
God the Creator: The heavens and the earth, the waters and the dust, the mountains and the stars were all measured and ordered by Him. Every atom and galaxy, every breath and heartbeat, proceeds according to the decree of the Almighty. Men are tempted to instruct God or question His dealings, yet He needs no counselor and requires no help.
God the Disposer: He not only made all things, He also governs all things with meticulous care. Isaiah calls the people to lift their eyes to the stars that they might remember the One who brings them out by number and calls them each by name. The stars obey His summons and not one is missing, not one out of place. If He orders the stars, will He fail in ordering your life? If He upholds galaxies, will He not uphold His people? His supreme transcendence should bring assurance, for He is too great to fail.
Verses 27-31 then apply this theology to the weary and fainthearted. Israel thought the LORD had forgotten them, so Isaiah reminds them that the everlasting God does not grow weary. Rather, He gives power to the faint. And He knows His people specifically. Thomas Ridgley aptly stated, “He has an exquisite knowledge of all things, as well as a propriety in using them at His pleasure.” The God who names the stars knows the very thoughts of your heart and ordains the steps of your way.
Believers, then, must remember that God is our very present Help. He proves this not only in His sustaining providence but especially in the sending of His Son. God the Creator and Disposer also became our Redeemer and Deliverer in Jesus Christ. This is the ultimate demonstration of His power and compassion—that He who stretched out the heavens also stretched out His hands upon the cross for our salvation.
And now, in Christ, we are given all things necessary for life and godliness. “He cares for them in all these, from the least to the greatest of their wants; 1 Peter 5:7, ‘Casting all your care upon him, for he careth for you.’ Their food and raiment for their bodies he has the providing of; and his visitation preserves their spirits, laying in new supplies of grace, exciting, quickening, and strengthening it.”[1]
Christ gives life and gives it more abundantly. Our very breath is dependent upon His sustaining power. Every spiritual benefit is poured out through the Spirit, and every step we take is known before Him.
Contemplations:
- Confession of Finiteness. I confess that I often approach You as if You were limited as I am. But Your Word reminds me that You weighed the mountains in scales and called the stars by name. Lord, forgive my arrogance and teach me to bow in adoration of Your might.
- Neglecting the God Who Sees. When I doubt Your providence or grow anxious about the future, I demonstrate a failure to believe You truly reign. But You are the Disposer of all things. Nothing is missing from Your gaze. Help me repent of this unbelief and trust Your rule in every detail of life.
- Presuming on Mercy. You are great in power and tender in mercy, yet I presume upon Your kindness and delay repentance. I ought to tremble before You, but too often I am indifferent. Too frequently I act as if You are neither present nor powerful. Lord, forgive this coldness and draw me again to fear Your name.
- Forgetting the Cross in Creation. I marvel at the heavens and praise Your majesty, yet how often I forget that the greatest display of Your might was not in stars, but in the death and resurrection of Your Son. Forgive me for separating Your power from Your grace. Let me see the cross in light of creation and rejoice that the One who upholds the universe also upholds my soul by His blood.
Prayer (Confession):
Almighty and Everlasting God, great in power and majesty beyond all measure, we come before You confessing our sin and smallness. You are the Creator who measured the waters in the hollow of Your hand and meted out the heavens with a span. You are the Sovereign Disposer of all things, calling each star by name, sustaining all by the word of Your power. And yet we have often walked before You as if You did not see, as if You were not near.
We confess that our thoughts of You have been unworthy and our reverence shallow. We have made light of Your greatness and spoken lightly of Your holiness. We have questioned Your providence and accused You in our hearts when circumstances were hard. We have imagined You forgetful or far off, when in truth You are always near, always wise, always good.
Forgive us, Lord, for our foolish unbelief. Forgive our pride, which thinks itself able to rule its own life. Forgive our ingratitude, which receives daily mercy and forgets the Giver. Forgive our coldness, which yawns before Your glory, and our rebellion, which disregards Your Word. Truly, we are not worthy to lift our eyes to heaven. We are but creatures of dust, and worse still, creatures who have sinned against our Maker.
Yet we come not in despair, but in hope, because You are also the God who saves. The same power which called the stars into being has raised our Lord Jesus from the dead. The same hand which set the earth on its foundation was pierced for our transgressions. In Christ, You have shown that You are mighty to save. And so we plead His righteousness as our only hope.
Cleanse us by His blood. Renew us by Your Spirit. Teach us to tremble rightly before You and to rest fully in You. Make us to know that the One who upholds all things by His might is also our Redeemer, our Shepherd, and our King. Let us not despise the day of small things, nor grow weary in waiting, for You are strong to preserve all who trust in You.
We lay our sins before You and ask for mercy. Do not remember our offenses but remember Your covenant in Christ. Grant that we may walk in reverence and awe, delighting in Your greatness and resting in Your grace. Let us never again think lightly of our sin or of Your holiness. May the knowledge of Your greatness lead us to continual repentance and sincere devotion.
In Jesus’ name I pray, Amen.
Further Scripture References for Isaiah 40:26:
Ps. 147:4, 89:11; Job 9:4; Gen. 2:1; Ps. 19:1; Rom. 1:20.
[1] Thomas Boston, The Whole Works of Thomas Boston: A Series of Sermons and the Christian Life Delineated, ed. Samuel M‘Millan, vol. 10 (Aberdeen: George and Robert King, 1851), 207.
