“With my soul have I desired thee in the night; yea, with my spirit within me will I seek thee early: for when thy judgments are in the earth, the inhabitants of the world will learn righteousness.”
My soul yearns for You in the night; my spirit within me earnestly seeks You. When the earth experiences Your judgments, the inhabitants of the world learn righteousness, establishing that the prophet's personal yearning for God and the cosmic effects of judgment are inseparable, that God's judicial work is pedagogical, teaching the world righteousness. The nocturnal longing and spiritual seeking suggest the intensity and sincerity of the prophet's devotion, the way that intimacy with God characterizes the life of faith. The connection between earthly judgment and the learning of righteousness by the inhabitants of the world suggests that God's judgments serve an educative purpose, that they reveal to creation the standards of righteousness. This verse personalizes the prophecy, showing that the theological affirmations are grounded in the prophet's own experience of longing for and communion with God.
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