“But this is the one to whom I will look. He who is humble and contrite in spirit and trembles at my word.”
– Isaiah 66:2
Now our ears should immediately perk up when we hear God say, “This is the one to whom I will look.” Who is God looking for? And the answer is, two things, he who is humble and contrite (repentant) in spirit. So, humility, contrition before God, and number two, and trembles at my word. When you hear the word of God, there’s a sense of awe, reverence, and trembling.
This Verse Reminds Us of the Qualities We Should Want to Mark Our Lives
Because of who is speaking it, God, this is his word, this is not the word of man. We open the bible, even when I just read Isaiah 66:2, at the beginning of this podcast episode. This is not the words of man, this is the word of God. God is speaking, so we tremble before it, because of who is speaking. And because we know there’s a weight that comes with it. That we are accountable for obeying it. So, this is who God is looking for. This is what God is looking for in our lives, and so, let’s pray together that these characteristics would mark us today.
Prayer for Humility
God, we look to You right now and we want You to look toward us. We want You to be honored, pleased, glorified in us, and so we humble ourselves before You. God, we pray, as we’ve prayed before in Isaiah 66:2. God help us to grow in humility. To grow in a more proper understanding of ourselves. God, we pray for contrite hearts. We don’t want prideful hearts before You that resist You. That turn away from You and that don’t trust in You. That, even when we walk through trials, that we think, “Oh,” when we begin to question Your goodness, we begin to question Your greatness and this way, that way. God, give us humility before You, help us to have humble spirits, and God, we pray for a holy sense of trembling at Your word.
Isaiah 66:2 Prayer for Reverance and Obedience
God, we pray that, as we read Your word, that we would realize who is speaking, we would realize it comes from You, that we would not treat it like we would treat any other book, that we would treat it with awe and respect and reverence, that we would hear it with that humility that we’re praying for and that God, you would help us to obey it, because we know, not only that we’ll be accountable for it, but because we know that life is found in it. That life is found in obedience to your word, so God help us to live lives of trembling, listening, and obeying Your word.
God, we pray. Pray for our own life, we pray this for each of our lives, we pray this for people around us, for our families, we pray this for Your church, God, for the churches we are part of. May these characteristics mark our churches, humility and contrition and a trembling sense at Your word. God, help us not to treat Your word casually when we gather together on Sundays to listen to it. Help us to listen to it with trembling awe.
Prayer for Isaiah 66:2 to Mark Our Churches
God, we pray for Isaiah 66:2 to mark our churches. May it be said of us, in the end, by Your grace we were humble and contrite in spirit, and we trembled at Your word. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.
David Platt serves as a Lead Pastor for McLean Bible Church. He is also the Founder and Chairman of Radical, an organization that helps people follow Jesus and make him known in their neighborhood and all nations.
David received his B.A. from the University of Georgia and M.Div., Th.M., and Ph.D. from New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary. Some of his published works include Radical, Radical Together, Follow Me, Counter Culture, Something Needs to Change, and Don’t Hold Back.
He lives in the Washington, D.C. metro area with his wife and children.
