It shall blossom abundantly and rejoice with joy and singing. The glory of Lebanon shall be given to it, the majesty of Carmel and Sharon. They shall see the glory of the LORD, the majesty of our God…..And the glory of the LORD shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together, for the mouth of the LORD has spoken. Isa 35:2, 40:5
The first passage, from Isa. 35, occurs after a chapter depicting God’s fierce judgement on the nations. Just when we are convinced everything is over and there is no hope, the promise of Isa 35:2 appears. The rest of the chapter goes on to describe the effects of seeing God’s glory: strength to the weak; courage to the fearful; the blind seeing; the deaf hearing; the lame leaping; water breaking out in the desert; and great joy for God’s people!
But it is not until we get to chapter 40 that we get a clearer view of what exactly the glory of the Lord is! Mark 1:1-3 quotes from Isa 40:3 and tells us that this glory is none other than Jesus Christ. He is the living hope, in the shadow of God’s fierce judgement. He is the dispenser of joy to God’s people!
The Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen His glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth. John 1:14