Fleeting beauty

The crown of pride, the drunkards of Ephraim, Will be trampled underfoot; And the glorious beauty is a fading flower Which is at the head of the verdant valley, Like the first fruit before the summer, Which an observer sees; He eats it up while it is still in his hand. In that day the LORD of hosts will be for a crown of glory and a diadem of beauty to the remnant of His people, - Isaiah 28v3-5

There can be no doubt that man is capable of doing marvellous works and achieving great things. We have all musical scores or seen works of art or seen feats of architecture that almost take our breath away. God gave mankind a measure of ability and creativity that extends to all men, not just His own. I think we can see this all the way back to the Tower of Babel which men built to draw attention to themselves.

But as magnificent as all these things are eventually they grow old. I have seen artist’s rendering of the nearby Trim Castle in its heyday when its whitewashed walls must have glowed in the rising and setting sun on its hill in County Meath. While still an impressive site 600 later it is basically ruins which man must work to preserve.

No one knows the ‘crown of pride and glorious beauty’ of Ephraim today. It is long gone. But the Lord of Hosts still remains and His crown of glory and diadem of beauty still shine. His people are still crowned with His glory.

All the works man crowns himself with today will one day be gone. Only God’s crown of glory lasts. Which one is most important to us today?