Isaiah 63:14

The *Lord’s gift to his people of a peaceful life came with the promise of a land of their own (see Deuteronomy 12:10).

A prayer for sympathy and help

v15 *Lord, look at us from heaven! Look down from your high and holy place where you live in *glory. Show us that you still care. Show us your power to help. Show us again your love and sympathy. Do not leave us alone without you. v16 In any case, you are still our Father. Even if Abraham and Jacob would not recognise us as genuine relatives, you would still be our Father. ‘Our Rescuer’ has been your name from ancient times.

v17 But *Lord, you have allowed us to live in a manner that does not please you. We are like travellers that have wandered from the right path. You have made us unwilling to respect you. Our hearts seem hard, like stones, because they are so unwilling to give you honour. Come back again to us, because we are your servants. We are the people who belong to you. v18 We possessed *Jerusalem for such a short time. Now our enemies have destroyed both the city and your holy *Temple. v19 For a long time now, you have been acting towards us as if we had never been your people.