Worm Your Way Out

Today's Worship Wednesday post is brought to you by the author of Timeless Text Messages, PT2006.
"Alas! and did my Savior bleed and did my Sovereign die? Would He devote that sacred head for such a worm as I?" Those words were penned by Isaac Watts in 1707. In the following verses we read the words of the Lord given to the prophet Isaiah.

13 For I am the LORD, your God,
who takes hold of your right hand
and says to you, Do not fear;
I will help you.
14 Do not be afraid, O worm Jacob,
O little Israel,
for I myself will help you," declares the LORD,
your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel.
Isaiah 41:13,14 NIV

What did God mean when he called his chosen, a worm? There are two other references in the Bible where man is referred to as a worm. In Job 25:4-6, Bildad equates man to a maggot. In this instance the worm would be a filthy, unrighteous, unacceptable person before God. The second reference is found in Psalms 22:6. Here the psalmist speaks of himself as a worm scorned and despised by people. The first reference is in regards to the condition of the worm. The second speaks of how the worm is treated by others.

Both meanings can be applied in today's text. Israel had become a people of uncleanness through their lies, wickedness, mischief, and sins. (Isaiah 6:5 and Isaiah 59:1-8) They were the object of their captor's anger and scorn. (Isaiah 41:11)

It makes no difference which meaning is applied to Jacob. The important part of the scripture is the declaration of the Lord's help to man, even the lowest of all men. The Lord will take hold of the worm and lift him out of dire circumstances.

On another note: Isn't it the lowly worm that can penetrate the hardest earth?
With God's help, we can go through the most difficult obstacles that block our progress.



The heart of the discerning acquires knowledge... Proverbs 18:15 NIV