This is what the LORD says:
“I will give Jerusalem a river of peace and prosperity.
The wealth of the nations will flow to her.
Her children will be nursed at her breasts,
carried in her arms, and held on her lap.
I will comfort you there in Jerusalem
as a mother comforts her child.”
When you see these things, your heart will rejoice.
You will flourish like the grass!
Everyone will see the LORD’s hand of blessing on his servants—
and his anger against his enemies.
See, the LORD is coming with fire,
and his swift chariots roar like a whirlwind.
He will bring punishment with the fury of his anger
and the flaming fire of his hot rebuke.
The LORD will punish the world by fire
and by his sword.
He will judge the earth,
and many will be killed by him. (Isaiah 66:12-16)

Why can’t we be happy today like we will be tomorrow when God makes everything okay? As human beings, we can only respond to what we can see, whether it is the pain of the moment, or our anticipation of whatever we think is likely to happen tomorrow. Pain overwhelms us more than joy ever can; the suffering we experience goes deeper than our pleasures, affects us more deeply. No one goes into counseling to uncover repressed memories of happiness. No one endures flashbacks of good times, or finds their current circumstances circumscribed by memories of ecstasy gone by.

The words translated “earth” and “world” in context refer to the lands of Mesopotamia, the “world” of the Assyrians and Babylonians. God promised the Israelites that he would avenge their pain against these tormenters who had destroyed their homeland and taken them away into captivity. God’s promises of tomorrow were intended to bring joy in the midst of today’s problems.

Only with God can we come to a place of optimism, of recognizing that the future memories we will have of eternal bliss can deeply constrain our experiences of today. Likewise, the satisfaction of God’s yet-to-be certain judgment on our enemies should be able to render aid to us as we endure their blows today.

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