Isaiah 33 is for people who haven't been trusting God. They’ve been going their own way, giving themselves to the wrong things. But now they’re in trouble and their perspective is changing. They are beginning to realize that their lives are fast becoming a lost opportunity. Though their repentance is long overdue, they are finally ready to give themselves to the LORD. But is it too late? Does God accept people who only turn to Him as a last resort? The message of this chapter is that even now, if you will come to God, He will not turn you away. God is always more ready to meet us than we are to meet Him. Judah was being threatened by the Assyrian Empire. God had promised to help His people, but they turned to Egypt instead. Egypt let them down, and Assyria kept coming. Judah’s King Hezekiah withdrew money from the temple treasury to buy the Assyrians off. It didn’t work, for the Assyrian king merely took the money and continued the assault. This “destroyer” was also a “traitor” (v 1). Judah had made a bargain with the devil. They had offended God, weakened themselves, and gained nothing in the end. There was only one place to turn. “O LORD, be gracious to us; we wait for you. Be our arm every morning, our salvation in the time of trouble” (v 2). It was a dramatic reversal from the callousness they displayed in chapters 29-30, that’s for sure! Now they are looking around them with confidence, recognizing that all they have is God, and God is all they need. He is their stability, their salvation, and their wisdom—as long as they live before Him with reverent obedience (v 3-6). Their peace negotiations had failed. The invader was at their gates. Panic was everywhere. But having sunk to their lowest level, God was ready to help them. Our failure and hopelessness is God’s opportunity to exalt Himself and defeat the enemy. There is no Assyrian greater that the LORD. As we cry out to Him, He is more than able to rise up and destroy the destroyer (v 7-12). Self-salvation is an illusion. Our sufficiency is in Christ. Only in Him do we find peace, freedom, and joy. But this life of confidence begins with the conviction of sin. God is holy; He is a fire who will burn forever with consuming intensity. We could never deserve His favor, but in Christ we are forgiven and made new. When our eyes behold the King in all His beauty, we break free of dependence on self to glorify and enjoy Him. We find rest, not because we can cope with our attackers but because we are at peace with God. He cares for us, and we delight in Him. With the LORD as our King, our salvation is certain (v 13-24). For further meditation: