“A day that will live in infamy” is what President Roosevelt called December 7, 1941, when the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor.  There would not be another aggressive attack on American soil of that magnitude until September 11, 2001.

We in America and have been fortunate in comparison to other nations of the world in terms of our vulnerability to foreign assault.  The little nation of Israel (later divided into Israel and Judah), lying at the crossroads of several ancient civilizations and empires, often found itself either a target or just a bystander caught in the crossfire.

Isaiah wrote his amazing prophecy when one such invasion was imminent and inevitable.  The Assyrians, with their reputation of apathetic brutality, were about to trample over and through all the promised land.

The people panicked.  Fear spread.  Rumors flew.

The truth is that the worst was, indeed, coming. 

Yet God still said to Isaiah, “Do not call conspiracy everything that these people call conspiracy; do not fear what they fear and do not dread it.”

It seems to me there is an increase of conspiracy theories and doomsday prophecies these days – everything from economic woe to religious oppression to nuclear war to terrorist attack to socialist government. 

I don’t know how much of that is real threat and how much is irrational hype.  I just know that sometimes we have to let our fears play out.  What if the worst does, indeed happen?  What if we have another Pearl Harbor or another September 11?

According to Isaiah, we still should not fear it.  Our hope, our confidence, our meaning, our peace, is not of this world anyway.  Isaiah says rather than fearing conspiracies or disasters, we should fear God and find sanctuary in him.  “I will wait for the LORD,” he says, “…I will put my trust in him” (8:17).