My people will abide in a peaceful habitation in secure dwellings and in quiet resting places.
– Isaiah 32:18
This is a promise from God that he will eventually bring his people to a place of peace and security and quiet and rest. And God is speaking to his people in the Old Testament a specific context about this, but it’s a picture we see all over the Bible, including the New Testament, of God’s promise of rest and peace and eternal security forever in him.
Isaiah 32:18 reminds us that there will come a day of total peace on the earth.
You look around us in the world today, and there is war, strife, conflict, enmity, insecurity and so many things that disturb quiet that don’t lead to rest.
And we know as the people of God, as those who trust in him that there’s coming a day when there will be total peace on the earth. Security for all of eternity, rest in God, with God from sin, no more evil, no more suffering, no more mourning, no more crying, no more pain. We know that’s where all of eternity is headed. For those who trust in Jesus, the new heaven and the new earth will be a place of completely peaceful habitation, completely secure dwellings, and quiet resting places. Not that there won’t be any noise.
We’ll be singing at different times and rejoicing in different ways, but we will be resting from all sin, from all temptation. No more temptation, just enjoyment of God forever. Oh, don’t you long for this. And all of this is only possible because God is able to bring these things about. God is the God of peace, and Jesus is the only one who has conquered sin and death and the grave, which leads us to pray in so many different directions. Let’s just pray accordingly.
Isaiah 32:18 reminds us that God is the Author of true peace.
God, we praise you as the author of all peace, the giver of all peace. Jesus, you are the prince of peace.
You alone can bring peace to our hearts and peace and our relationships and peace in the world. Oh God, as we think about war, then we pray. Please bring an end to wars. God, we pray for an end to war in Russia and Ukraine. We pray for an end to the war between Israelis and Palestinians. God, we pray for an end to the war in Yemen, the civil war there. God, we pray for an end to wars all over the earth. We pray for your peace. Lord, we want your kingdom to come. Please bring your kingdom to the earth and help us, God, to spread the gospel of peace in the middle of war and strife and enmity and conflict all around the world and all around us where we live.
And whatever communities we find ourselves in… God, help us to spread the gospel of peace even as we rest in our hearts in you… In the middle of it all. God, we praise you for the security we have in you that no matter how unstable this world is, we are secure in Christ. The one who’s conquered sin and death and the grave. So help us to live in that kind of security and that kind of rest. Even as we wait for the full expression of your rest and your peace in the world. And God, help us to spread the gospel of peace around us today and around the world.
Prayer for Peace Among the Nations
God, we pray specifically for all these different nations we’ve just prayed for peace… And among these people who are at war. Lord, we pray for the church in those places to spread the gospel of peace… For the church around the world to work together to spread the gospel of peace to every people group on the planet… Knowing that there will one day be full peace, restoration, security, and rest for all who trust in Jesus… From every nation, tribe, and tongue. God, please bring that about and use us as we anticipate that day to spread the gospel of peace today.
In Jesus’ name, we pray all this according to your Word, oh God of peace. 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.
