"Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness." (Isaiah 41:10)

The second verse of the hymn "How Firm a Foundation" follows quite closely to the words of our text.

Fear not, I am with thee; O be not dismayed,
For I am thy God, and will still give thee aid;
I'll strengthen thee, help thee, and cause thee to stand,
Upheld by my righteous, omnipotent hand.

The Christian should hold no illusions regarding his possible circumstances. Our Savior does not promise a life of ease or wealth or even worldly acceptance. He does promise that He will be with us no matter what, and that He is just and powerful, able to deal rightly with any difficulty, and that we will be ultimately victorious with His help: "For I the Lord thy God will hold thy right hand, saying unto thee, Fear not; I will help thee" (Isaiah 41:13).

The New Testament authors reflected this theme in many other passages as well. Paul prayed for the believers at Colosse, that they would be "strengthened with all might, according to his glorious power, unto all patience and longsuffering with joyfulness" (Colossians 1:11). Christ promised: "These things have I spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world" (John 16:33).

We have no cause for fear, for our Savior subjected Himself to far greater difficulties: "Consider him that endured such contradiction of sinners against himself, lest ye be wearied and faint in your minds" (Hebrews 12:3). He is "the author and finisher of our faith" (Hebrews 12:2). His victory is complete, and He is with us. JDM