“but they who wait for the LORD shall renew their strength;
they shall mount up with wings like eagles;
they shall run and not be weary;
they shall walk and not faint.”
Isaiah 40:31, ESV
This is a well worn scripture, and it gets much attention from commentators. This is good. But there are certain things that still go unnoticed. These will prove themselves as critical, especially as we press into an understanding.
It starts with understanding the Hebrew word “kawvah.” We translate this into English as “waiting” or “hoping.” Certainly that is quite reasonable. But this Hebrew word has a definite complexity which we really must look at. “Kawvah” literally means “to bind together by twisting.”
It carries with an idea of binding. This alone carries out the concept of connecting and uniting. It strongly suggests a unity and securing. It most certainly stresses a deep sense of intervening into things beyond us.
When you bind something, it is like ‘handcuffing” someone to another. This is an attachment, which can’t be broken. Where one goes, the other must follow. But there is an idea of being pliable. And soft, and tractable, and quite reasonable considering.
This idea, “to bind together by twisting,” intrigues me. It is a lot like a rope, and the strands weave. Two strands aren’t enough. But three strands woven together starts the idea of a rope. Your effort to combine these different strands will make things quite amazing.
What is it like, to be intertwined with the Holy Spirit? We wrap into Him, and He follows suit. We get connected with Him, and we start to realize we have become completely different people. Twisting and winding, we incorporate us into the Father. We wait. And twist. And then blend right into this special place.
There is a certain softness we absolutely must enter into. A certain flexibility. We wind into Him, and we come to a point of not really knowing, where we are and were He begins. And that is a wonderous place to be.
“Waiting” on Him brings us strength. Isaiah anticipates the deep need of people. We are only strengthened when we decide to “wait” on Him. And remember dear one, to wait means we are now woven into Him. And that changes everything.
Broken Believers 