Named

 “Fear not, you worm Jacob,

    you men of Israel!

I am the one who helps you, declares the Lord;

    your Redeemer is the Holy One of Israel.

Behold, I make of you a threshing sledge,

    new, sharp, and having teeth;

you shall thresh the mountains and crush them,

    and you shall make the hills like chaff;

you shall winnow them, and the wind shall carry them away,

    and the tempest shall scatter them.

And you shall rejoice in the Lord;

in the Holy One of Israel you shall glory.”

Isaiah 41:14-16, ESV

Fear not, you worm Jacob--can you hear the words of comfort? Comfort and grace. For Israel, the other nations called her:

Exiled

Despised

Defeated

Trampled Upon

Mocked

Shamed

Worm.

This was her name among the nations, this was her name for herself. A small, defeated nation among the rising and falling superpowers of Assyria, Egypt, Babylon, Persia. Who was she?

Worm in the world’s eyes.

Worm in her eyes.

And what names do you wear?

And the Holy One of Israel speaks, “I know what you see yourself as. I hear the taunts. My ears are not deaf to the names thrown at you. You were once proud, but you have been thrown to the earth and trodden underfoot by your pride and independence-apart-from-me (Isa. 28:2-3; 29:4-6).”

And he speaks into their shame: “In me, you will become a threshing sledge, a mighty instrument of power. Instead of in the dust, you will be above the dust. I make the weak things strong (1 Cor. 1:27-30; 2 Cor. 12:10), for I give my own strength (Isa. 40:31). I transform--instead of shame, there will be honor.”

From weak to strong.

Shame to honor.

Worm to sledge.

The Author himself renames you--may you hear his voice above all others.