The wolf shall live with the lamb,
the leopard shall lie down with the kid,
the calf and the lion and the fatling together,
and a little child shall lead them.
The cow and the bear shall graze,
their young shall lie down together;
and the lion shall eat straw like the ox.
The nursing child shall play over the hole of the asp,
and the weaned child shall put its hand on the adder’s den.
They will not hurt or destroy
on all my holy mountain;
for the earth will be full of the knowledge of the Lord
as the waters cover the sea. —Isaiah 11:6-9
We live in polarizing times. Simple differences have turned into calloused divisions. People with opposing opinions have pulled so far apart that it feels like we live in two different worlds.
Like predator and prey, we have come to expect conflict. We choose sides. We stay on alert. We keep a safe distance out of necessity, but we brace ourselves for impact should the enemy cross invisible battle lines.
Into this broken world, Isaiah offers us a vision that almost seems impossible: predator and prey, natural enemies, sharing the same space in peace. And this is not just a pleasant picture. It is a bold declaration about the kind of world that God is bringing into being.
The world that God is creating assures us that the divisions we experience now are not our ultimate end. The divisions may feel fixed, even necessary, but they are not final. God is present in both polarities, and God is present in between. God is present in current reality, and God is present in the tension of drawing all things toward something new.
A day is coming when the separations we cling to will lose their power, and a deeper order—an order shaped by peace, justice, and love—will take root. The wolf will not merely be restrained; the lion will not simply be caged. Their very nature will somehow be changed. Violence will give way to peace. Fear will dissolve into trust. The world will not be a world of coexistence. The world will be a world completely transformed.
Until then, we are invited to live as signs of that coming reality: choosing gentleness over aggression, understanding over fear, and hope over resignation.
Deanna Deaton is an elementary music teacher by day and a SAM (Synod Authorized Minister) candidate by night and weekend. Deanna enjoys spending time with friends and family, napping, writing blackout poetry, making tin art, dabbling in watercolors, collecting orange fish, and taking care of her two cats. Deanna attends Trinity Lutheran Church in Sanford, NC.
To Consider
Where in my life have I accepted division or conflict as “just the way things are,” rather than something God longs to transform?
What would it look like, in one concrete relationship or situation, to live today as a sign of God’s coming peace?
Prayer
God of all creation, we confess how easily we accept division and how quickly we learn to live at odds with one another. Plant within us your vision of peace. Soften what is hardened within us. Transform what feels fixed and unchangeable. Make us instruments of your coming kingdom—people who choose love where there is fear, and grace where there is distance. Until your peace fills all things, help us live as signs of what is to come. Amen.