“Ah, sinful nation,
a people laden with iniquity,
offspring of evildoers,
children who deal corruptly!
They have forsaken the Lord,
they have despised the Holy One of Israel,
they are utterly estranged.
“Why will you still be struck down?
Why will you continue to rebel?
The whole head is sick,
and the whole heart faint.
From the sole of the foot even to the head,
there is no soundness in it…
What to me is the multitude of your sacrifices?
says the Lord;
I have had enough of burnt offerings of rams
and the fat of well-fed beasts;
I do not delight in the blood of bulls,
or of lambs, or of goats.
“When you come to appear before me,
who has required of you
this trampling of my courts?
Bring no more vain offerings;
incense is an abomination to me.
New moon and Sabbath and the calling of convocations—
I cannot endure iniquity and solemn assembly.
Your new moons and your appointed feasts
my soul hates;
they have become a burden to me;
I am weary of bearing them.
When you spread out your hands,
I will hide my eyes from you;
even though you make many prayers,
I will not listen;
your hands are full of blood.
Wash yourselves; make yourselves clean;
remove the evil of your deeds from before my eyes;
cease to do evil,
learn to do good;
seek justice,
correct oppression;
bring justice to the fatherless,
plead the widow’s cause.
“Come now, let us reason together, says the Lord:
though your sins are like scarlet,
they shall be as white as snow;
though they are red like crimson,
they shall become like wool.
If you are willing and obedient,
you shall eat the good of the land.” Isaiah 1:4-6a,11-19a
The hands between sick head, unsound heart, and misled feet were despicable to the Lord. He rejected the vain offerings of rebel devotees. The blood on their hands from insincere ritual sacrifice needed cleansing only He could give.
The beautiful truth about bad blood is that the Christ blood was borne for washing. The perfect Savior’s hands shed blood to offer the richest and truest blessing that no man-brought sacrifice could, the knowledge and eternal favor of the God of the universe. Offering our very hands to His to be cleansed and put to noble use changes the nature of offering. What once brought forth goods to be noted or earn reward is now open to receive all He freely gives. Corrected thinking results in meaningful living that pulses with Jesus instead of ego and self-importance. (Hebrews 9:11-14; 1 Peter 1:18-19)
Has our mind turned sick, no longer finding health in regular worship, reading and meditating on the Word, fellowship with the saints? Has our heart grown faint from fervor, or wicked through repeated exposure to godless streaming? Have our feet strayed from purposeful industry, attendance in sincere worship, or serving the needy? If so for these, the hands have lost their connection to the nail-scarred hands of Jesus, and thus their way in right sacrifice.
If we willingly reasoned with Jesus and invited His cleansing, what new attitudes and actions might we employ? What will we offer others of good, love, and justice that pleases God?
Lord who freely gave Yourself for me, may I with clean hands bless others for Your sake and glory.
As the rain and snow 