A Sword And An Arrow

Isaiah 49:1-7

Various different jobs and professions use all types of tools to help them get their work done.  These tools need to be kept in good condition if they are going to work and help the person using them.  A carpenter must keep his saws sharp, an artist his paint brushes clean, a dressmaker her sewing machine in good condition.  Work tools need to be kept in their proper place, ready to be used, or else they are useless. In today’s Scripture passage from the prophet Isaiah, I want to focus mainly on verse 2, and two tools that God mentions He wants to use.  Let’s take a look at these together.

God has a work which He wishes to accomplish in the world, and that is the salvation of souls.  In order to achieve that He needs tools. Christians, those who have placed their faith in the Lord Jesus Christ as their Savior, are the tools that God uses to spread the message of salvation to the lost.  In order to be used, though, we need to be tools that are in good working order, or else we are of no use to Him.

The first of the two tools God speaks of in verse 2 is a sharp sword.  Isaiah says that the mouth is like a sharp sword. The mouth is used primarily for two things, eating and speaking, and here we are referring to speaking.  When the Lord Jesus came to earth, the message He brought was told to His twelve apostles, and the other disciples who followed Him. Before Jesus left the earth to return to heaven, He told them that they were to go out into the world and teach others His message of salvation (Matthew 28:18-20).    People, though, cannot believe and be saved if they do not hear the message. The Apostle Paul very clearly stated that dilemma, that people need to hear the message, and they can’t hear it if no one is preaching or teaching it (Romans 10:14-15). God needs a useful and ready tool. He needs a good sword coming from the mouth of believers.

Why a sword?  That is an odd picture of a sword coming from a mouth.  People sometimes say that someone else’s tongue is like a sharp sword, usually referring to them speaking nasty and cutting remarks.  That’s not the type of sword God wants coming out of our mouth! He wants us to be speaking the Word of God to others, bringing them the message of His redeeming love through His Son, Jesus Christ.  God has said that His Word, the Bible, is powerful and sharper than a two-edged sword (Hebrews 4:12). The Holy Spirit can use words of Scripture to cut deep into the heart of someone who reads or hears it, turning them from sin and the world to the Lord.

This sword of the Lord needs to be kept sharp and well-honed.  A soldier from the past, when swords were used in battle, would have been in a bad spot if his sword blade was dull.  A rusty blade was not good, either. They would spend plenty of time before battle making sure that their sword was sharpened and polished.  The way to be sure that our sword of the Lord, the Bible, is sharp and polished is by reading and studying it each and every day. A dusty Bible that sits on the shelf untouched is a dull, rusty sword!

The other tool that Isaiah mentions in this passage is a polished arrow that is in a quiver.  Just like a sword, the points of an arrow also need to be kept sharp and polished. The shaft of the arrow also needs to be inspected, and kept smooth and polished so that when it is shot out of the bow it will sail smoothly to the target.  The feathers at the end of the arrow need to be kept in good shape, as well. And of course, the bow has to be well-tended to.

In olden times the bow and arrow was used both in battle and in hunting.  An arrow that sat in the quiver was useless. They had to be shot out in order to hit the target.  Isaiah tells how we are God’s polished arrows. To be used by the Lord we need to be put in the bow and shot out.  In other words, we need to be willing to go out and spread His message. Just sitting in the quiver, the arrow doesn’t get out and do what it’s supposed to do.  We are God’s arrows, and are supposed to be available to be “shot out” to bring His message to the world. If we are just sitting around, inside the “quiver”, we aren’t doing what we are supposed to do.  We need to be a sharp and polished arrow, a sharp sword, ready to be used by God for His purpose.