“I have brought them unto My holy mountain, and caused them to
rejoice in My house of prayer. Their burnt-offerings and their sacrifices are
for a pleasing thing on My altar, for My house 'A house of prayer' is called
for all the peoples.” (56:7)
God brings the dispersed and assimilated members of His people
throughout history back to His sacred mountain, which is the eternal bond with
Him as the rejoicing in His house. Thus the goodness in their being and doing
becomes the pleasing elevated offerings in His altar.
Therefore goodness as the cause and effect of righteous deeds is the premise
for all peoples to come to God's house of prayer. We call prayer the offering we elevate to Him as the
goodness He wants us to be, to have and to do.
“An affirmation of the Lord God, who is gathering the dispersed of
Israel: 'Again I gather to him [Israel] to his gathered ones'.” (56:8)
God reiterates His promise in the Torah “that then the Lord your God
will turn your captivity and have
compassion upon you, and will
return and gather you from all the peoples where the Lord your God
has dispersed you.” (Deuteronomy 30:3-5). He then spoke to
Israel as one person, and now through the Prophet referring to Israel also in
singular, mentioning his dispersed to be gathered for His Final Redemption.
“Every beast of the field come to devour, every beast in the
forest. His watchmen are blind, they are all without knowledge. They are all
mute dogs, they can't bark, dozing, lying down, loving to sleep.” (Isaiah 56:9-10)
The Prophet calls our attention
regarding negative traits and trends in consciousness as the wild beasts that
devour the goodness that makes life meaningful. These are also our inner
and outer enemies that do as they please when our higher knowledge and
principles become dormant as blind watchmen and mute dogs.
Isaiah also refers
to the leaders of his generation that didn't care for the spiritual well being
of their people, behaving as ignorant and blind guardians. The lessons from the past and the
present are to keep eternally vigilant against the
predicament of ego's fantasies and illusions.
“And the dogs are strong of desire, they have not known satiety,
and they are shepherds! They have not known understanding, all of them to their
own way they did turn. Each to his dishonest gain from his quarter: 'Come ye, I
take wine, and we drink, quaff strong drink, and as this day has been tomorrow,
great exceeding abundant!'” (56:11-12)
As we allow our negative trends to lead
our thoughts, feelings, emotions, passions and instincts, they become the
insatiable dogs that are our shepherds. There is no understanding or knowledge
of what is proper and right as expressions of Love's ways and attributes.
Ignorance provides its payoffs as the corrupted cause and effect of envy,
coveting, greed, lust, haughtiness, wrath, indifference and indolence. These
become the motivation for dishonest gains that don't last more than their
fleeting moments.
Every day turns the same as yesterday and tomorrow, for they are as
futile as their cause and effect. We
even believe that there is abundance in futility, even if we already know that fantasies
and illusions do not last. Thus we come to realize that only the goodness from
Love's ways and attributes transcends, for it sustains life and transcends
life.
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