Bruised Reeds and Smoking Flax
There are certain verses that just work better in the old King James. Isaiah 42:3 is one of those for me, "A bruised reed shall he not break, and the smoking flax shall he not quench". Perhaps this one works for you? Or maybe you like the ESV "faintly burning wick "instead of "smoking flax"?
Whatever the case, the image of the fragile being protected is beautiful, and one that I wanted to highlight as we make our way through Lent. If you were with us this past Wednesday for our Ash Wednesday Worship service you will recall this quote from the Worship Sourcebook, "The aim of Ash Wednesday worship is threefold: to meditate on our mortality, sinfulness, and need of a Savior; to renew our commitment to daily repentance in the Lenten season and in all of life; and to remember with confidence and gratitude that Christ has conquered death and sin." There is a holy reckoning with our frailty in the Lenten season as we remember our mortality and the sin that necessitates our need for a Savior.
As we have been seeing, the book of Hebrews tells us that we have a high priest, Jesus, who has compassion for this frailty because Jesus became frail as well. He knows pain and suffering. He understands the struggle. He knows what it is to hope and be disappointed, to be wounded and abandoned.
In the parable of the good Samaritan we see ourselves broken and bruised, laying on the roadside. But in the person of the Samaritan, we see Jesus lift the wounded traveler onto his donkey, and carry him to an inn, a safe place where he could receive care and would have the time he needed to recover. All of us are wounded travelers who need someone to see us, to stop for us and give attention to our wounds. We all need One skilled with the bruised reed.
It is my prayer that by taking time to remember that we are dust, to remember that we are the bruised reed and the smoking flax, we will also experience the embrace of the one who bids the weary to come and rest. May each of us take on his yoke, for his yoke is easy and his burden is light. Let us together find our strength with the One who is gentle and lowly in heart (cf. Mt. 11:28-30).
Photo by Thomas Jensen thojen on Unsplash