Sunday Meditation: No weapon formed against you shall prosper

Is 54:17: No weapon formed against you shall prosper, And every tongue which rises against you in judgment You shall condemn.This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord, And their righteousness is from Me,” Says the Lord.

The Jews had grown comfortable in exile, and many were reluctant to leave Babylon and undertake the arduous journey back to a country they could barely remember. Again and again the prophet urges them forward, reassuring them that the journey will be easy and the rewards abundant, because it is God calling them home. In Chapter 54 the Hebrew nation is depicted as a barren woman, abandoned by her husband. But that husband (God) has returned. "For a brief moment I abandoned you, but with great compassion I will gather you" (Isaiah 54:7). Out of this new affirmation of love and unity comes the promise of verse 17: "No weapon that is fashioned against you shall prosper, and you shall confute every tongue that rises against you in judgment."

We, too, are called to continue our spiritual journey—especially when we might be tempted to settle for what we already have. We are not here in human form to simply live out average lives. We are here to be the creative Power of God in expression, and to use that Power to create the kingdom of heaven. It seems a daunting task, but there is nothing to fear. Shadows and resistance will arise to challenge us, but they will have no power. Our spiritual purpose cannot be denied. "This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord." --Unity

The context of this passage focuses on God’s people. Israel had sinned, been judged, but now would be restored, and those who had tried to oppose Israel would be crushed. God would fulfill his promises to his people; he judged them when they sinned but now that they had turned back to him, he would restore them, and nothing could stop his plan.
There is a principle here that God vindicates his people; but it is not an ironclad guarantee for every circumstance in the short run for each individual. (For example, though God often does provide protection for Christians, he does not do so all the time; many Christians have died as faithful martyrs.)
It does encourage us, however, that God will ultimately vindicate his servants and his plans for history. So whatever we must face in the short run, in the long run we can be sure of God’s faithfulness and vindication if we remain faithful to him. --Craig Keener