Today's Sufficient Grace

Isaiah 30:15–18 (ESV),

"¹⁵ For thus said the Lord God, the Holy One of Israel, “In returning and rest you shall be saved; in quietness and in trust shall be your strength.” But you were unwilling, ¹⁶ and you said, “No! We will flee upon horses”; therefore you shall flee away; and, “We will ride upon swift steeds”; therefore your pursuers shall be swift. ¹⁷ A thousand shall flee at the threat of one; at the threat of five you shall flee, till you are left like a flagstaff on the top of a mountain, like a signal on a hill. ¹⁸ Therefore the Lord waits to be gracious to you, and therefore he exalts himself to show mercy to you. For the Lord is a God of justice; blessed are all those who wait for him."

Judah, in fear of the Assyrian invasion looked to Egypt for help.  Their failure to look to their God is emphasized by the prophet.  Judah refused to listen to God's counsel, revealing the depths of their rebellion. The solution is clear: “For thus said the Lord God, the Holy One of Israel, “In returning and rest you shall be saved; in quietness and in trust shall be your strength.” But you were unwilling,” (Isaiah 30:15, ESV)

"This is the true path to victory and peace, but their general disinclination to heed the word of God (v. 9) becomes clear in their rejection of this particular message (cf. 28:12)."[1]  Yet in spite of all this we read these words in Isaiah 30:18 (ESV):

"¹⁸ Therefore the Lord waits to be gracious to you, and therefore he exalts himself to show mercy to you. For the Lord is a God of justice; blessed are all those who wait for him."

"As so often in the prophets, God's judgment falls first of all; but a remnant preserved through the judgment experiences the blessings of his grace and the fulfillment of his positive purpose for them. Those who wait for him will be identical with this remnant. The Babylonian exile and the return from it are chiefly in view here." [2]

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1. Crossway Bibles. (2008). The ESV Study Bible (p. 1294). Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles.

2. Expositor's Bible Commentary, The, Pradis CD-ROM:Isaiah/Exposition of Isaiah/IV. God and His People (28:1-33:14)/C. Woe to the Rebellious Children (30:1-33), Book Version: 4.0.2