Kingdom of our God

The Book of Isaiah speaks in troubled times.Its message for God’s people Israel stretches across prosperity, loss, disaster and the beginnings of a fresh hope. It is rooted in the events of its time and conveys God’s message about how to be faithful people and how to be a part of God’s people in their time. As Christians try to serve the kingdom in our own time, the Book of Isaiah speaks to us of the need to seek God, to listen and to understand his word. This commentary seeks to explore some of these themes and reflections. It looks to create a space in which Christian readers can think and reflect about what God is calling us to now as we seek to serve the Kingdom of our God.Engaging with critical scholarship but designed to be accessible for those beginning formal theological study or Christians who want to go deeper in their understanding of the book, The Kingdom of Our God demonstrates that the words of the prophets can still speak to us today

This is a bold but sensitive, succinct but wide-ranging commentary. Jenni Williams argues that the book we call Isaiah emerged over some four hundred years, through at least three different prophets, where we see Israel always on the world stage, surrounded by foreign powers, whether of Assyria, Egypt, Babylon, or Persia. As each prophet engages with politics, however, the backdrop is always of a divine plan working through human agency. Williams shows us the relevance of this to today’s church, as we too yearn for peace amongst nations through the non-abuse of power: a refreshing and challenging approach which any Christian, ordained or lay, would benefit from., "Reading Isaiah is like climbing a mountain, and we all need a good guide if we are to make rewarding progress. Here Jenni Williams offers sure-footed advice on good paths to follow, based on a careful analysis of the historical and textual details, and frequently stopping to help us admire the theological view… With this guidebook in hand, readers of Isaiah may set out with confidence: an energising and eye-opening climb awaits.”

Revd Dr Jenni Williams is Vicar of St Matthew and St Luke, Oxford and teaches Old Testament at Wycliffe Hall, Oxford.