You keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on you, because he trusts in you. Trust in the LORD forever, for the LORD GOD is an everlasting rock.
Isaiah 26:3-4 ESV
As we continue to move through this time of uncertainty in our world, many of us can feel our peace dissipating. It’s increasingly difficult to hang on to our peace of mind with an unknown future. Coupled with the challenge of processing our rapidly changing world, we are suddenly home with our spouses. Not only are we trying to manage the frightening reality of our new world, but we are forced to do it in close proximity to someone else trying to process the same, all while trying to figure out how to cope with new work protocols. It can be extremely difficult to maintain a sense of peace in times like these, and as we struggle to find peace in our own minds, our relationships can grow increasingly strained.
But God made us the most amazing promise through the prophet Isaiah. He doesn’t just promise us to give us His peace, He promises us perfect peace.
To truly understand what God promises us through Isaiah, we need to dig deeper into the meaning behind the phrase perfect peace. Many of us know that the Hebrew word shalom translates in English as peace, but it means so much more than simply peace. Peace is generally defined as the absence of conflict, true shalom refers to an inward sense of wholeness or completeness, a tranquility that runs deep for our core. Shalom comes from the root word shalam, which means to be safe in body or mind. It refers to a wholeness so complete that it just pours out of you onto others.
Throughout scripture, we can find this word used in reference to the supernatural peace in the midst of chaos. This peace is can only come from the Lord. When God gives his blessing to Aaron in Numbers 6: The LORD bless you, and keep you; The LORD make His face shine on you, And be gracious to you; The LORD lift up His countenance on you, And give you peace, God is referring to the inner peace and completeness that comes when we are under His protection. It is a rest deep within our souls brought on by the presence of the Lord, regardless of the outward circumstances.
Understanding the deeper meaning of the word shalom now, we can return to the original passage. In this verse, Isaiah doesn’t just use the word shalom once, he uses it twice—shalom shalom is translated as perfect peace. Repetition in the Hebrew language communicated intensity. It’s not just a wholeness or completeness, it’s not just a supernatural peace offered by God that makes us want to give to others, it’s deeper than that. It’s a peace beyond our ability to comprehend or our ability to bring about on our own. It can only be achieved by a deep-rooted presence of the Holy Spirit. God doesn’t just give us one peace, He opens up two doors of peace and invites us to walk through to know His peace.
God invites us to perfect peace despite our circumstances, but this kind of peace is only accessible when we set our minds on Him. In these uncertain times, when you are forced into close quarters with your spouse, take the time to set your minds on Him. Tell stories of His faithfulness, encourage one another to look for His goodness in this trial, read His Word and pray together. He will bring us His perfect peace when our minds are stayed on Him—He promises.
Press on ~ you are loved 💗
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