Isaiah 26:8

8 In the path of thy judgments, O LORD, we wait for thee; thy memorial name is the desire of our soul.

Isaiah 26:8 Meaning and Commentary

Isaiah 26:8

Yea, in the way of thy judgments, O Lord, have we waited
for thee
Meaning by "judgments" either the ministration of the word and ordinances, called statutes and judgments, ( Psalms 147:19 Psalms 147:20 ) ( Psalms 19:9 Psalms 19:10 ) an attendance on which is the right way of waiting upon God, and where it may be expected he will be found and manifest himself, and favour with his gracious presence; or else the corrections and chastisements, which are done in wisdom and with judgment, in measure and in mercy, and in a fatherly way, and for good; and so the sense is, that they had not only followed the Lord in a plain and even way, but even in the more rugged paths of afflictive dispensations; nor did these things at all move them from their duty to him, and worship of him: the desire of [our] soul [is] to thy name, and to the remembrance
of thee;
to God himself, and to a remembrance of his nature, perfections, and works; to Christ, whose name is as ointment poured forth, and whose person is desirable, because of his glory, beauty, and fulness, because of his offices, and blessings of grace; and to his Gospel, which publishes and proclaims him, his grace, and salvation; and to his ordinances, which refresh the memory of his people concerning him, and his love to them shown in what he has done and suffered for them.

Isaiah 26:8 In-Context

6 The foot tramples it, the feet of the poor, the steps of the needy."
7 The way of the righteous is level; thou dost make smooth the path of the righteous.
8 In the path of thy judgments, O LORD, we wait for thee; thy memorial name is the desire of our soul.
9 My soul yearns for thee in the night, my spirit within me earnestly seeks thee. For when thy judgments are in the earth, the inhabitants of the world learn righteousness.
10 If favor is shown to the wicked, he does not learn righteousness; in the land of uprightness he deals perversely and does not see the majesty of the LORD.
Revised Standard Version of the Bible, copyright 1952 [2nd edition, 1971] by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.