We Have Met the Enemy, and He Is Us ∙
From the very beginning, your first ancestor sinned against me; all your leaders broke my laws. – Isaiah 43:27
Isaiah 59:1-15
1 Listen! The LORD’s arm is not too weak to save you, nor is his ear too deaf to hear you call.
2 Your sins have cut you off from God. Because of your sins, he has turned away and will not listen anymore.
4 No one cares about being fair and honest. The people’s lawsuits are based on lies. They conceive evil deeds and then give birth to sin.
7 Their feet run to do evil, and they rush to commit murder. They think only about sinning. Misery and destruction always follow them.
9 So there is no justice among us, and we know nothing about right living. We look for light but find only darkness. We look for bright skies but walk in gloom.
10 We grope like the blind along a wall, feeling our way like people without eyes. Even at brightest noontime, we stumble as though it were dark. Among the living, we are like the dead.
11 We growl like hungry bears; we moan like mournful doves. We look for justice, but it never comes. We look for rescue, but it is far away from us.
12 For our sins are piled up before God and testify against us. Yes, we know what sinners we are.
13 We know we have rebelled and have denied the LORD. We have turned our backs on our God. We know how unfair and oppressive we have been, carefully planning our deceitful lies.
14 Our courts oppose the righteous, and justice is nowhere to be found. Truth stumbles in the streets, and honesty has been outlawed.
15 Yes, truth is gone, and anyone who renounces evil is attacked. The LORD looked and was displeased to find there was no justice.
Walt Kelly, the creative mind behind the comic strip Pogo, masterfully wrote the series for nearly three decades. From its debut in 1948 until its conclusion in 1975. It became a syndicated staple of effective, penetrating, incisive satire for American readers.
Set against the backdrop of the Okefenokee Swamp in Georgia, in the heart of the Southeastern United States, Pogo brought to life a world of anthropomorphic animal characters. The titular character, Pogo Possum, stood out as the quintessential everyman – amiable, humble, philosophical, and endearingly naive. In a 1969 TV Guide interview, Walt Kelly eloquently described Pogo as embodying the “reasonable, patient, softhearted, naive, friendly person we all think we are.”
The comic strip often drew from historical events to enrich its narrative. One notable instance is the reference to a pivotal moment during the War of 1812, specifically the naval battle on Lake Erie. Following an American victory, the naval commander, Oliver Perry, succinctly reported to Major General William Henry Harrison, “We have met the enemy, and they are ours.” Walt Kelly found this phrase fertile ground for a play on words that became one of his most iconic contributions to American pop culture.
In 1970, Kelly ingeniously altered Perry’s words into a profound reflection on human nature and society with the phrase, “We Have Met the Enemy, and He Is Us.” This insightful declaration serves as a poignant reminder of how often individuals or collectives are the architects of their own misfortunes.
People tend to create their own problems. We have only ourselves to blame for the difficulties that they experience. Our personal, family, and community dilemmas are self-inflicted. Pogo became far more than just a comic strip. It morphed into a platform for profound cultural and philosophical observations.
REFLECT & PRAY
If we are unfaithful, he remains faithful, for he cannot deny who he is. – 2 Timothy 2:13
Father I acknowledge that I am often the source of my own challenges. Thank you for Your unwavering faithfulness and the reassurance that any seeming estrangement is temporary. Thank You that I am a member of Your Forever Family.
INSIGHT
The children of the King are intended to walk in the light of the Lord. They are to thrive, not merely survive. But so often, this is not the case. Instead, they usually find themselves ensnared in shadows, walking in gloom instead of walking in light. “When people live on lies, they live in a twilight zone and do not know where they are going (Isaiah 59:9-11)” (Wiersbe).
Isaiah 2:5 Come . . . Let us walk in the light of the LORD!
Isaiah 59:9 There is no justice among us, and we know nothing about right living. We look for light but find only darkness. We look for bright skies but walk in gloom.
How did this happen? Regrettably, poor choices were made by the people themselves.
Isaiah 59:12-13
12 For our sins are piled up before God and testify against us. Yes, we know what sinners we are.
13 We know we have rebelled and have denied the LORD. We have turned our backs on our God. We know how unfair and oppressive we have been, carefully planning our deceitful lies.
Isaiah is in deep sorrow over his people’s grave situation. He cries out for deliverance from the mess they have brought upon themselves. Indeed, the people acknowledge their plight and express their grief. They are like the living dead. They cry out like animals in distress, growling like bears and moaning like mournful doves.
Isaiah 59:10-11
10 We grope like the blind along a wall, feeling our way like people without eyes. Even at brightest noontime, we stumble as though it were dark. Among the living, we are like the dead.
11 We growl like hungry bears; we moan like mournful doves. We look for justice, but it never comes. We look for rescue, but it is far away from us.
They seem to be at a loss for words and unable to articulate their grief. Rather than using words, they growled and moaned like angry bears and pitiful doves (Constable). “The picture of growling bears and mourning doves expresses an element of self-pity” (Friesen).
The people are acutely aware of their dire straits and yearn for relief. They recognize the absence of peace, justice, and righteousness. Their path is overshadowed by darkness and despair, devoid of guiding light. They find themselves stumbling and grumbling, lost and unable to find their way.
In an ongoing struggle. They continually attempt to merely cope and survive. They are just trying to get by. Despite their dissatisfaction with their current state, they persist in their wrongful ways and continue to sin. Without repentance or seeking divine intervention from the Father for a righteous resolution, they continue to live guided by their earthly desires and instincts. They live as natural, soulish people rather than spiritual ones.
Why doesn’t the Father intervene? “Israel’s sin that holds God back from delivering them” (BBC). Rescue and salvation are far from them. “God could not answer their prayers because their sins hid His face from them” (Wiersbe). How did they get so low?
Isaiah 59:1-2
1 Listen! The LORD’s arm is not too weak to save you, nor is his ear too deaf to hear you call.
2 Your sins have cut you off from God. Because of your sins, he has turned away and will not listen anymore.
The narrative takes a hopeful turn – this is not where the story ends. In the light of all eternity, the rift between the children of the King and the Father is fleeting, like the blinking of an eye. This temporary aberration was swiftly rectified, and this period of separation afforded the people a chance for introspection, enabling them to realize that they were their own worst enemies.
Isaiah 65:24 I will answer them before they even call to me. While they are still talking about their needs, I will go ahead and answer their prayers!
Isaiah 54:7 For a brief moment, I abandoned you, but with great compassion, I will take you back.
¯\_(ツ)_/¯ 2-20-2
© Dr. H 2024
Dr H Reflections 