Upon the Palms of My Hands

2012-07-14

“Behold, I have graven thee upon the palms of my hands; thy walls are continually before me.” (Isaiah 49:16)

The Context

This was written when God was promising Judah restoration. There will come a day when the LORD will visit all his people for good, and bless them. But the response exposed a lack of faith: “But Zion said, The LORD hath forsaken me, and my Lord hath forgotten me” (49:14). But God tells them: “Can a woman forget her sucking child, that she should not have compassion on the son of her womb? yea, they may forget, yet will I not forget thee” (49:15). No, it is the people that forget God, not the other way around. In our day, though we are not ancient Israel, we may see our country going down a dark and wicked path, but this is only because we have abandoned God. It is his people that have grown lukewarm in this country. God remembers his people regardless of what his people do.

After God tells us this, he says our verse of interest: “Behold, I have graven thee upon the palms of my hands; thy walls are continually before me.”

The Palms of God’s Hands

God explicitly tells Zion, where once stood his magnificent temple, that he had graven Zion “upon the palms of my hands.” This is permanent. God will not forget Zion. But what is Zion? It was God’s dwelling place on earth; it is where people would commune with God with song and sacrifice. It is the people of Zion of whom he speaks, not an inanimate place.

More significantly, we know that our Lord Jesus Christ ultimately had his people graven in his palms when his hands were pierced at Calvary. Those marks remained when he had risen from the dead (John 20:25-28). Those who trust in him are born into the family of God, possessing God’s righteousness, and will never be forgotten of God.

The Walls are Before Him

Since God is talking about Zion, he is referring to the literal stronghold or castle that David captured from the Jebusites that later became the location of the temple. But as I have said, there is more than a place involved; this is representative of his people. These walls may have been destroyed, but the true wall of Zion is the LORD. He is our protection, and we are always under his care.

Because of Jesus Christ, and our trust in him, he is the great wall about us. His graven palms bore our sins, and we belong to him.