Comfort, Comfort My People

After long silence, after many years of pain, somebody talk. No be shout. No be scold. Softly, di way you go talk to pikin wey dey cry. Comfort. Comfort, my people.

Di book of Isaiah turn corner for chapter forty. Di chapters before am warn again and again say God go judge Jerusalem because dem turn back from am. And for di end, e happen. For di year five hundred and eighty-six before Christ, di Babylonian army destroy Jerusalem and im temple. Dem carry plenty of di people go far place for Babylon, hundreds of miles for di east, near im big rivers. Dem sit down there and cry, one psalm talk, when dem remember Zion. Dem dey wonder whether God don finish with dem forever. Isaiah forty talk straight enter dat sorrow. Na God message for im people wey dey exile.

“Comfort, comfort my people,” na so your God talk. “Talk gently to Jerusalem. Call her and tell her say her war don finish, say dem don forgive her sin.” Talk gently. For Hebrew e mean talk to her heart. Her hard time don finish. Dem don forgive her sin. She don receive from di Lord hand double for all her sins. E be like say God dey talk, e don do. Sorrow don do now. I never finish with you. I dey come carry you go home.

Then anoda voice sound. “Di voice of one person wey dey shout, Prepare di way of di Lord for wilderness! Make one straight highway for desert for our God.” When one great king dey travel for di old world, workers go dey go before am to make di road smooth. Cover di potholes. Flatten di bumps. Clear di rocks comot. And Isaiah imagine say dat one dey happen for one giant level. “Dem go raise every valley up, and dem go bring every mountain and hill down. Di rough ground go dey level, and di rough places go dey flat. Di glory of di Lord go show, and all people go see am together.” God dey come, and di whole world go see. Then one voice talk: shout. Wetin I go shout? All people be like grass. Grass dey dry, flowers dey fade. But di word of our God dey stand forever.

Then dem tell Jerusalem herself make she climb one high mountain and shout di good news give di towns of Judah. “See your God!” Look, e dey here. And how e be? First, e strong. “Di Lord God go come as one mighty one, and im arm go rule for am.” But then, for di very next breath, e gentle. “E go feed im flock like shepherd. E go gather di lambs for im arm, and carry dem for im chest. E go gently lead di ones wey get young ones.” One mighty King with strong arm, and dat same arm dey pick up small lambs wey don tire and hold dem close. Hundreds of years after, one man wey im name na John show for wilderness near River Jordan, e dey call people make dem get ready. All di four Gospels talk: dis na di one wey Isaiah talk about, di voice wey dey shout for wilderness, prepare di way of di Lord. And di one wey e prepare di way for call imself di good shepherd.

One group of Jewish people take dis verse serious so tey dem move go desert. Di community wey keep di Dead Sea Scrolls live for Qumran, near di Dead Sea. Dia rule book, wey dem dey call di Community Rule, quote Isaiah forty, verse three, and e explain say dem don go wilderness to prepare di way of di Lord there, by studying God law. Dem dey live there for di years before John di Baptist start to preach, no too far from there.

Comfort, comfort my people. You go find am for Isaiah chapter forty, verse one reach eleven. One mighty God wey dey come meet im people wey dey pain, and e dey carry di lambs close to im heart. So see one question wey you go carry dey go. When you dey tire or you dey sad, you fit picture yourself as one lamb wey God dey carry?